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This table is part of the ncsl polling away report.
Absentee/mail-in ballots must be processed before they can be counted, and in many states, processing can begin before ballots are allowed to be counted.
processing
“Processing” means different things in different states, but typically the first step is to compare the signature on the outside of the return envelope with the voter’s signature at the register to ensure a match.
In some states, once the signature is verified, the envelope can be opened and the ballot prepared for tabulation by removing it from the envelope, flattening it, and stacking it with other ballots. some states may also allow ballots to be scanned, but without pressing the “count” button to get results.
Thirty-eight states and the Virgin Islands allow election officials to begin processing absentee or mail-in ballots before the election.
- alaska, arizona, arkansas, california, colorado, delaware, florida, georgia, hawaii, idaho, illinois, indiana, iowa, kansas, kentucky, louisiana, maine, massachusetts, minnesota, missouri, montana, nebraska, nevada, new jersey, new mexico, new york, north carolina, north dakota, oklahoma, oregon, rhode island, tennessee, texas, utah, vermont, virgin islands, virginia, washington, and wyoming.
Nine states and Washington, D.C., allow election officials to begin processing absentee/mail-in ballots on Election Day, but before polls close.
- alabama, district of columbia, michigan, mississippi, new hampshire, pennsylvania, south carolina, south dakota, west virginia, and wisconsin.
maryland does not allow the processing of absentee/mail ballots until 10 a.m. m. on the Thursday after an election, per state regulation.
And in two states and Puerto Rico, the day on which the process can begin is not specified:
- connecticut allows processing to begin at the discretion of the local voter registrar.
- ohio allows processing to begin prior to the count at a time determined by the board of elections.
- Puerto Rico does not specify.
count
counting is the act of counting the votes on the processed ballots to obtain a result. Like “processing,” the definition of “counting” (or tabulating or tallying) may vary by state, and some states may consider counting to include the scanning of ballots through voting equipment without obtaining a count or final result. ncsl refers to the terminology of each state when distinguishing between processing and counting.
Most states begin counting (or tabulating or counting, depending on state terminology) absentee or mail-in ballots on Election Day. most states also prohibit the release of election results until after the polls close, and many states make it a crime to share results before then.
Sixteen states and Washington, D.C., do not allow the count to begin until the polls close:
- alabama, alaska, district of columbia, idaho, illinois, maine, maryland, minnesota, mississippi, new hampshire, new mexico, north dakota, rhode island, south dakota, vermont, virginia, and washington.
Twenty-three states allow the count to begin on Election Day, but before the polls close:
- arkansas, california, georgia, indiana, iowa, kentucky, louisiana, massachusetts, michigan, missouri, new jersey, new york, north carolina, ohio, oklahoma, oregon, pennsylvania, south carolina, tennessee, texas, west virginia, wisconsin and wyoming.
Ten states allow both processing and counting to begin before Election Day:
- arizona, colorado, delaware, florida, hawaii, kansas, montana, nebraska, nevada, and utah.
connecticut leaves the timing of the count to the discretion of the local voter registrar. In the Virgin Islands, the count begins after the absentee ballots have been processed, but the timeline is not specified, and Puerto Rico does not specify it.
status
When can processing of absentee/mail-in ballots begin
when can the count of absentee/mail ballots begin
alabama
wing code. §17-11-10
7 a.m. m. on election day.
after the polls close on Election Day.
alaska
alaskan statistics. §15.20.201
seven days before election day.
20:00 on election day.
arizona
arix. statistics §16-550, §16-551
upon receipt.
Counting may begin immediately after processing, but results may not be released before all precincts have reported or one hour after polls close on Election Day. disclosing information earlier is a felony.
arkansas
a.c.a. § 7-5-416
seven days before election day.
8:30 a.m. m. on Election Day, but results are not reported until after the polls close on Election Day.
california
ann from the west. California. electrical code § 15101
twenty-nine days before election day.
A vote count can be accessed or posted at 8 p.m. on election day.
red
c.r.s.a. §§ 1-7.5-107.5
upon receipt.
fifteen days before Election Day, but the count cannot be posted until after 7 p.m. m. on election day.
connecticut
with. gene statistics § 9-150a
at the discretion of the local voter registrar.
at the discretion of the local voter registrar.
delaware
15 del. c. § 5510
Friday before Election Day.
on the Friday before Election Day, but the count cannot be pulled or reported until polls close on Election Day.
district of colombia
cc mun. reg. tit. 3, § 808
signatures can be verified and the secret envelope removed before tabulation. exact time not specified.
after the polls close on Election Day.
florida
f.s.a. western § 101.68
§ 101.5612
upon receipt.
at the end of the public test of the automatic tabulation equipment (which begins no more than 25 days before early voting begins). publishing the results early is a felony.
georgia
o.c.g.a. § 21-2-386
Signature verification is done upon receipt and further processing can begin as early as 8am PT. m. on the third Monday before Election Day.
7 a.m. m. on election day.
hawaii
hrs § 15-9, § 11-108, § 11-152
Signature verification is done upon receipt and further processing may begin eighteen days prior to Election Day.
eighteen days before Election Day, but results cannot be released until after the polls close on Election Day.
idaho
idaho code §34-1005, § 34-1007, §34-1008
signature verification performed upon receipt. ballots are not opened until they are delivered to the polls or to a central location for counting.
after the polls close on Election Day.
illinois
10 ilcs 5/19-8
Signature verification must begin within two days of receipt.
after the polls close on Election Day.
indian
ic 3-11.5-4-11, 3-11.5-4-12
upon receipt.
depending on the county, at 6 a.m. m. on Election Day or immediately after the electronic poll books used at each polling place or vote center have been updated to indicate that the county received the absentee ballot.
iowa
iowa code §53.23
the day before Election Day if directed by the commissioner.
on election day, at a time established by the election commissioner to allow a reasonable amount of time to complete the count of absentee ballots by 10 p.m. on election day. the commissioner may also choose to call the meeting the day before the election.
kansas
k.s.a. § 25-1134
before election day. exact time not specified.
Ballots can be counted before Election Day, but the final tabulation will not be completed until Election Day.
kentucky
krs § 117.087
can start 14 days before Election Day and must start by 8 a.m. m. on election day.
counting begins after all absentee ballots have been processed.
Louisiana
lsa-r.s. 18:1313, 18:1313.1
Parishes with more than 1,000 absentee ballots may begin three days before Election Day with written approval from the Secretary of State, or one day before Election Day without. parishes with fewer than 1,000 absentee ballots may begin before polls close on Election Day.
Counting may begin before polls close on Election Day, but no later than 8 p.m. m. on election day.
main
21-a m.r.s.a. § 759, 760-b
seven days before Election Day if notice of processing times is posted at least 30 days before Election Day.
after the polls close on Election Day.
maryland
code md, election law, § 11-302
after the elections.
massachusetts
m.g.l.a. 54 § 94 and § 95
upon receipt.
On Election Day and no later than one hour after the polls close.
michigan
mcls §168.765(a)
at 7 a.m. on election day.
at 7 a.m. m. of election day. Anyone with access to the absentee ballot count must sign an oath that information related to the processing and counting will not be released in any way until after the polls close.
minnesota
m.s.a. §203b.121
verification upon receipt. after the close of business on the seventh day before the election, verified ballots may be opened and deposited in a ballot box.
after the polls close on Election Day.
mississippi
Miss. ann code § 23-15-639
on election day when the polls open.
after the polls close on Election Day.
Missouri
v.a.m.s. 115,299, 115,300
five days before election day.
on election day.
mountain
month. an. code, § 13-13-241
signature verification performed upon receipt. three business days before Election Day, election officials can open the secrecy envelope and place the ballot in a secured ballot box until tabulation takes place.
one day before Election Day, if a vote-counting machine is used. tabulation using a manual count cannot begin until election day. access to an electronic system containing the results of the advance tabulation is limited to the electoral administrator and the person designated by the electoral administrator.
nebraska
neb. Rev. statistics §32-1027
Verification can begin the second Friday before Election Day. if approved, the envelope may be opened, the ballot unfolded and flattened, and placed in a sealed container.
24 hours before the opening of the polls. results will not be released until after the polls close on election day.
snowfall
n.r.s. ab 321, § 11, 13, 15
signature verification performed upon receipt.
fifteen days before the day of the election, and the count must be completed by the seventh day after the election. Results may not be reported until polls close.
new hampshire
n.h. Rev. statistics § 659:49
at 1 p.m. m. on Election Day, unless a different time is published and announced, no sooner than two hours after the polls open.
after the polls close on Election Day.
new jersey
n.j.s.a. 19:63-17, 19:63-22
signature verification performed upon receipt. inner envelopes cannot be opened until Election Day.
Election day.
new mexico
n. meter. yes a. § 1-6-14
Any time after mail ballots have been mailed through the fifth day before the election, the county clerk may call a board of elections to verify returned mail ballots. if more than 10,000 absentee ballots are submitted, they can be opened and inserted into an electronic voting machine two weeks before Election Day. if fewer than 10,000 absentee ballots are submitted, they may be opened and inserted into an electronic voting machine five days before the election.
Absentee ballots are inserted into the vote-counting machines before Election Day, but the votes are not counted until after the polls close. it is unlawful for a person to disclose the results of a count before the close of the polls or the deadline for receiving mail-in ballots.
new york
mckinney election law § 9-209
verification within four days of receipt. ballots are placed in counting machines and scanned the day before the first day of early voting.
one hour before polls close on Election Day, but results cannot be released until polls close on Election Day.
north carolina
n.c.g.s.a. § 163-230.1 and 163-234
at county board of elections meetings beginning the fifth Tuesday before Election Day. counties that use optical scanning devices can remove ballots from their envelopes and place them in tabulators.
5 p. m. on Election Day, unless a resolution is adopted at least two weeks before the election to allow the count of all absentee ballots to begin at 2 p.m. m. on election day. results will not be announced before 7:30 p.m. on election day.
north dakota
ndcc, 16.1-07-12
three business days before election day.
after the polls close on Election Day.
ohio
ohio rev. code § 3509.06
Processing, including the use of automatic tabulation equipment to scan ballots, may begin before ballot counting time at a time determined by the board of elections. exact time not specified.
The exact time is not specified, but the count may not be released before the polls close.
oklahoma
26 ok. st. Ana. § 14-123, 14-125
10 a.m. m. on the Thursday before Election Day, or sooner with the approval of the clerk of the state board of elections.
on or before election day with the approval of the clerk of the state board of elections. when the count is conducted prior to Election Day, the county board of elections shall remove the election results storage media from the voting device, without obtaining a hard copy of the results, and seal the ballots counted that day in a box transfer secured by the bailiff until such time as the board meets to count. results cannot be reported before 7 p.m. on election day.
oregon
o.r.s. § 254.478, § 260.705
upon receipt.
results cannot be made public until after 8:00 p.m. m. on election day.
pennsylvania
25 p.d. § 3146.8
7 a.m. m. on election day.
at 7 a.m. m. on Election Day, but votes may not be recorded or posted until after the polls close.
Puerto Rico
rhode island
r.i. gene laws § 17-20-26, §17-22-1
fourteen days before election day.
20:00 on election day.
south carolina
s.c. code § 7-15-420
9 AM m. on election day.
9 AM m. on election day. Results may not be reported until after the polls close.
south dakota
sdcl § 12-19-43, § 12-19-46
on election day before the polls close.
after the polls close on Election Day.
Tennessee
code lieutenant ann. § 2-6-202, § 2-6-303, § 2-6-304
signature verification performed upon receipt.
On Election Day after the polls open and no later than four hours before the close of the general election, or two hours before the close of all other elections.
texas
v.t.c.a., electoral code § 87.0241, § 87.027§ 87.041
no more than 20 days before election day.
when the polls open on election day. in a jurisdiction with more than 100,000 people, the count may begin at the end of the early in-person voting period.
utah
u.c.a. 1953 § 20a-3a-402
Processing may begin prior to Election Day. exact time not specified.
Counting may begin before Election Day. exact time not specified. Results may not be reported until after the polls close on Election Day.
vermont
17 v.s.a. § 2546a, 2546b
Ballots can be deposited in the vote tabulator 30 days before election day, if the civil authority board votes in favor.
at the close of the polls on election day.
virgin islands
18 c.i.c. § 666, 667
virginia
go code ann. § 24.2-709.1, § 24.2-712
upon receipt.
by the close of the polls on Election Day, but ballots can be inserted into the ballot counting machines before the close of the polls. if absentee votes are counted by hand, the count may begin after noon on Election Day. vote counts may not be reported until after the polls close.
washington
west rcwa 29a.40.110, 29a.84.730
upon receipt.
20:00 on election day. no person may release the results of the count before 8 p.m. on election day. rape is a misdemeanor.
west virginia
w. Virginia. code, § 3-3-8
Absentee ballots are delivered to precincts on Election Day.
Election day. results cannot be released until polls close and precinct results are posted on the door of polling places; doing so is a violation of the oath taken by the count board.
wisconsin
w.s.a. 6.88
after the polls open on Election Day.
after the polls open on Election Day.
wyoming
w.s § 22-9-121 and 125
the Thursday or Friday before election day.
on election day.